Typically, a complex technical device, such as a magnetic resonance (MR) tomography, is configured to be of modular design. This is understood to mean that the whole device can be put together from a multiplicity of individual modules, e.g. solenoids, receivers, amplifiers, treatment table etc. For each of these modules, specified above basically according to type, there are normally a plurality of variants or embodiments, e.g. various designs of treatment table, various solenoids etc., from which to select in the course of the design of a specific exemplar of the device. As such, a module is normally itself put together in turn from other modules or sub-modules. By way of example, the treatment table may comprise the modules for a chassis, a height adjustment, a support etc., with each of these modules again being able to have a plurality of variants available for selection. In addition, workflows which need to be implemented in order to set, maintain or operate the device may also be of modular structure. As such, a module may therefore contain an apparatus component, or else a software component or a workflow.
The device of the type described above may not exist in a single well-defined design. Rather, a multiplicity of different configurations of the device may exist in accordance or in line with a respective particular selection of modules. An inclusive number of all of the configurations may be represented by a “configuration structure”. The configuration structure contains the reciprocal dependencies of the modules, which modules may be subunits of a “super-ordinate” module, for example. In addition, the configuration structure specifies which module or modules in a configuration may require the presence of a particular further module or modules or which module may not be able to be combined with a particular further module or modules in a configuration. A selection of modules which corresponds to the configuration structure is called a “valid” configuration. Normally, only such a valid configuration produces a working device.
Typically, a particular stock of information may need to be provided in connection with a technical device. Such stock of information includes, by way of example, documentation for the device, such as technical manuals, user manuals, programming instructions etc. However, the stock of information required in connection with the technical device may also comprise, by way of example, a parameter collection for setting the parameters of the device, configuration files, driver software or the like.
Conventionally, the information associated with the device, e.g. the manual or the parameter collection, is created individually for every configuration of the device. With the multiplicity of possible configurations for a complex technical device, such as for the MR tomography cited at the outset, matching the information to every possible configuration individually on account of the associated complexity associated may become difficult. Alternatively, in connection with a technical device, information typically provided may be equally valid for a multiplicity of configurations for the device, e.g. in the form of a universal manual which covers all possible configurations of the device equally. However, when the device is highly complex or there are a large number of configuration options, the information provided may become less manageable.
Accordingly, one approach is to select the associated information for a complex technical device of modular design dynamically, i.e. in automated fashion, from an information library which stores a stock of information covering all configurations, for each specific configuration of the device. However, a problem arises in that the information library which needs to be associated with a complex device is typically so extensive, becoming barely comprehensible or controllable any longer. Another factor contributing to this problem, in particular, is that the modular design of the device means that often a multiplicity of different experts create respective information for a sub-region of the device and put this information into the information library. Any errors or omissions which exist within the information library are therefore sometimes not identified or are identified only at an undesirably late stage.